UK SHOPPERS QUEUE FOR RETAIL THERAPY AS LOCKDOWN ENDS
▶ Low temperatures do not deter crowds as stores reopen and consumer confidence soars
Consumers in the UK returned to the high street yesterday to take advantage of shops and restaurants reopening and as surveys reported confidence was at its highest level in nearly three years.
Shoppers faced chilly temperatures to wait for department stores and boutiques in England and Wales to open for the first time in more than three months.
Consumer confidence in the UK rose to 108.5, the highest level since August 2018, according to data from YouGov and the Centre for Economics and Business Research (Cebr).
Paul Marchant, chief executive of budget retailer Primark, which has 161 stores across the UK, told The National that the retailer enjoyed “a wonderful morning … welcoming our customers back”.
Shoppers queued up outside Primark as well as luxury department store Selfridge’s on Oxford Street in London from 6am, while 1,000 customers lined up at Ikea in Bristol, western England, for its reopening.
“As expected, stores have been very busy but we’re more than ready and very confident in the safety measures we have in place,” Mr Marchant said, referring to anti-coronavirus precautions.
“The mood has been incredibly upbeat and positive.”
Alison Grainger, Marks & Spencer’s head of clothing and home, said the retail chain stocked its stores with “tiered dresses, pretty tops and new seasonal denim” to meet the demand.
“While it’s no longer all just about loungewear, as you
would expect we’re going to be dedicating more space to casualwear in our shops than pre-pandemic,” she said.
By noon, footfall across all UK shopping destinations was up 100 per cent compared with a week ago and 350 per cent higher than 2020, according to data from Springboard.
YouGov/Cebr analysis showed that consumer confidence has risen steadily since UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson unveiled his road map out of lockdown in February.
Last month, Britain’s consumer confidence score increased by 2.1 points to 108.5, with any score above 100 indicating
that more consumers are confident than not.
Increased business activity and optimism about household finances provided the biggest boosts to the score.
The British Retail Consortium said businesses have spent millions of pounds to make shops coronavirus secure, with Marks & Spencer, for example, putting a greeter at the door, John Lewis offering customer services hosts and Ikea putting staggered entry in place.
Marks & Spencer reported a 200 per cent increase in downloads of its app and more than one million transactions through its Mobile Pay Go digital
shopping option, something it expects will continue.
Hospitality venues, including restaurants, cafes, museums, zoos and theme parks also opened their doors to customers again, as did gyms, beauty salons, and swimming pools.
England’s hospitality sector will receive a £314 million ($430.5m) boost in the first week after the reopening of the country’s restaurants, cafes and pubs, the Cebr said.
The Federation of Small Businesses found that more than half of companies expect revenue to rise over the next three months.
But only 40 per cent of Britons
expect life to return to normal in the next year, according to a study from the World Economic Forum and Ipsos, compared with 60 per cent globally.
While shops plan to stay open for longer, it is unclear whether the surge in demand yesterday will last long enough to help retailers recoup lost earnings.
To ensure the recovery stays on track, Britons will need to spend the huge savings they have built up in their bank accounts during the three lockdowns, with banks calculating the figure to be as high as £170 billion – a stimulus worth almost 8 per cent of pre-pandemic gross domestic product.